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Alex Ford Joins Fitbot

This week we’re excited to introduce you to Alex Ford, a computer engineer turned web developer who recently relocated from Austin to Boulder to join the team here at Fitbot.

How did you first get into software development?

My journey to software began in hardware. When I was in high school, I created a job for myself buying and repairing video game systems off of eBay. Through fixing older systems such as the Nintendo (NES), Sega Genesis, Atari, I learned the basics of soldering and using a voltage meter.

I have the curiosity of my friends to thank for getting me into DIY hardware projects. They introduced me to Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), which I played everyday for the latter part of high school and we eventually started building our own custom DDR Pads.

Tinkering and ripping apart electronics exposed me to circuit boards, but I had no idea what was going on between the metal. Since I enjoyed my experience with it during high school, I pursued a Computer Engineering degree at the University of Texas, and as time went on, I got my hands on as much software as I could and it eventually became my full-time job.

Where are you from originally? What brought you to Boulder?

My early childhood was spent in Germany, where I rode bicycles with my parents every weekend. When anyone asks though, I tell them I’m from Austin and Houston Texas, which is where I spent most of my life.

The first time I came through Boulder, I stopped on a return trip from Yellowstone National Park. We stayed overnight, and I absolutely fell in love with the city’s bicycle culture. It was early June, everyone was riding bikes, and I saw miles and miles of bicycle paths. Over the past 7 years, I’ve often returned to Boulder to bike around and explore the mountains.

What role does fitness play in your life?

I love cycling! Love, love love! I have a burning desire to discover the world on two wheels. Anytime I travel, I want to hop on a bike and explore. I’ve recently started bicycle touring, carrying my own tent, clothes and food in panniers. I spent a week biking the cliffs of Utah around Zion National Park, biked 850 miles along the Pacific Coast from Northern Oregon to San Francisco, and most recently said farewell to my home state on an extended weekend tour of the Central Texas Hill Country.

I’m always looking for ways to combine software with my hobbies. My life goal is to connect people more deeply with the outdoors through technology, since a lot of the time, technology disconnects us from the nature. I knew that if I joined Fitbot, I’d be surrounded by people and customers who are using technology to form a deeper connection with fitness and their active lifestyles.

Do you think technology is having a positive or negative impact on people’s health and fitness?

I think it’s having a positive impact on our social health, but a negative impact on our physical health. Technology sparks a lot of interests and curiosities, and we have more information about health and fitness at our fingertips than ever before. That said, people are spending an increasing amount of time behind screens, which can mean spending less time outdoors or being active.

What’s one tool or technology that’s greatly improved your quality of life in the past 5 years?

My climbing shoes symbolize one of the greatest improvements to my quality of life in the past few years. I’m loving the sport of rock climbing. It’s slow, methodical, powerful, and continues to exceed my expectations every time I grab a hold on the wall. I feel lik industrial rock gym designs are getting better and more creative with every gym that’s built. A lot of gyms have coworking spaces and organize social events, so it’s also been and are a great place to meet people. Not to mention, climbing is a fun workout.

What’s your favorite part about working at Fitbot so far?

I want to learn about how people use technology to be more active. What do they care about, how are they using it, and how can I help? I am excited to be a part of a team and application that connects people to fitness in a meaningful way.

What do you hope to accomplish while at Fitbot?

I want to learn about how people use technology to be more active. What do they care about, how are they using it, and how can I help? I am excited to be a part of a team and application that connects people to fitness in a meaningful way.

What’s your go-to text editor or IDE? Tabs or spaces?

At my last job, we unified around Emacs. This allowed us to get the most out of our pair programming sessions because we could share context and knowledge more quickly. I’m always developing my Emacs skills, but there’s still a lot to learn.

Two spaces per Tab because I need to room for long variable names.

What does your ideal work setup look like?

I really love working at offices with open floor plans with a pair of headphones covering my ears. One large monitor is all I need, but I do a lot of work on my 13″ Macbook as well (it has to fit in my pannier for biking to work).

In order to be my best self at work, I need to bike to work. I hope to make that a priority for the rest of my career. My first job out of college was over 1 hour bike ride each way. It was great getting that much time in the saddle, but now, I’m enjoying a short 15 minute bike ride to work each way. Going forward, I’ll take the shorter commute every time 😀.